Applicants who are veterans of military service also may be able to claim veteran's preference which gives them preferred status over other candidates with equal qualifications.

In theory, the Government gives black and white teachers equal pay for equal qualifications, but since white teachers are better prepared, they make more money.

Determination of the "equal qualifications" of a person entitled to preference under this law was left to the appointing officer.

Even so, the researchers concluded that black and Hispanic applicants with equal qualifications were 60 percent more likely to be turned down by lenders.

The courts may also order compensation for women who were denied a post despite having equal qualifications.

"It would be difficult to find in terms of those raw qualifications an appellate judge with equal or superior qualifications," the President said.

According to the complaint, the discrimination begins when minority employees are hired and given lower starting salaries than white employees with equal or lesser qualifications.

"Another candidate who has equal qualifications and is free of Judge Breyer's personal predicament should be nominated."

Q. Let me try again: If the choice were down to two university applicants of equal qualifications, one black and one white, whom would you take?

It is now ranked 12th equal in Scotland for these qualifications.